Page 56 of Personal Escort

Ben just lifts his hands in the air. “What my sisters want, my sisters get. That’s all I worry about.”

Jake laughs and thumps me on the shoulder. “And his little sister wants you, huh?”

“We already did this. You missed the threats on my life. We’re all good now.” I’ve got a sloppy, stupid-happy grin on my face, and I don’t care.

“You could have told me it was Cara who you eloped with when we were texting earlier.”

“We’d just arrived. I was busy defending my honor to her older siblings.”

Jake glances around toward the living room. “What do you want to bet they have my wedding all planned out by the time Ben gets the steaks grilled?”

“No doubt. Have you guys picked a date?”

“We’re thinking Thanksgiving. It’s our one-year anniversary, give or take, and winter dates may be easier to come by in the city. Although we could follow your lead and just elope.”

I keep silent, because it’s none of their business that Cara and I haven’tjustdone anything.

We’ve begun something, though. And when the time is right, we’ll finish it in our own way.

The next morning, we both wake up while the house is still quiet. Gray light filters through the window. “If we hustle down to the beach, we could probably catch the sunrise,” Cara whispers, her eyes sparkling. “We’ve never shared one of those.”

“Have we shared a sunset?” I ask as I pull on jeans and toss her a hoodie.

“Three of them. Well, two that we could see, and then, uh…” She blushes. “It was dusk when we went for that walk in Brooklyn.”

I drop my gaze to her mouth. Our first kiss. And then we both gamely tried to walk away, even though it changed everything. “I remember.” I glance back at her eyes. “But the other two?”

“Dinners out west. When I was in school.” Her cheeks stay pink. “You have excellent taste in restaurants with amazing views.”

“And even better company.” I reach for her and she takes my hand. Quietly, we sneak downstairs and out the back door.

The sun has broken the horizon to the east, and we walk down the beach in that direction, watching it slowly climb into the sky, bringing with it a bloom of color.

“I didn’t have a crush on you back then,” Cara says quietly. “It wasn’t like that. It was just nice. That’s why I remember those dinners.”

“And the views helped.”

She laughs. “Sure. Yes. But you’ve always seen me.”

I squeeze her hand in mine and rub my thumb against her skin. “It was easy to see you. I’ve always liked you. Before I loved you. Before it would have been appropriate to love you. I don’t remember the restaurants we went to or the views, but I remember everything we talked about. Your ideas, your assignments, your frustrations.”

She slides her fingers out of mine and twirls away, jogging down to the water. I chase her, and she dodges and weaves up and down the beach until I catch her. My arms slide around her waist as she throws her hands in the air, and I spin us both.

“You’ve always been the most beautiful girl in the world to me,” I admit. “Even when I was firmly in protective older friend mode. And if you’d come on to me, I don’t know that I would have been able to say no.”

“Then it’s for the best I only saw you as a mentor back then, right?”

Heat crawls through my chest. “Yes.”

“But not now,” she says on a breath, her lips twisting in a shy, happy smile. “You said I should wait for someone who lights me up inside. You do.”

My attention keeps snagging on her soft, pink mouth. It did back then, too. Secrets I kept from myself, apparently. “I also said you should wait for a kid to get down on one knee, and I forgot to do that part.”

“I forced your hand a bit.”

“It’s never too late.” I kiss her as I set her back down, then I lower myself to one knee. I take her hand, with my ring already on it, and I gaze up at her. “Cara, will you marry me? For real?”

“Yes,” she breathes. “Although everyone already thinks we did.”

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